Donald Trump is expected to meet with Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) Monday morning at Trump Tower in New York City.
Gabbard is slated to be Trump’s first meeting of the day, according to transition pool reports, ahead of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R), former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) and Elaine Chao, who served as Secretary of Labor under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009.
Gabbard would be the first congressional Democrat to meet with Trump.
Gabbard stepped down from her post as vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, which required her to remain neutral in the presidential primary, to endorse Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in February.
She had previously ruffled Democrats’ feathers by urging then-DNC chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) to host more debates between Sanders and Hillary Clinton. She did eventually endorse Clinton for the presidency.
The Hill previously reported that Steve Bannon, Donald Trump’s incoming chief strategist, admires Gabbard, whose stance on guns and Islamic extremism is at odds with that of her fellow Democrats. A military veteran, Gabbard has criticized President Barack Obama for not saying “radical Islam” and suggested that he had been weak on Syria, according to the Washington Post.
